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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23720965">Blind but still fighting...</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emo_Nova16/pseuds/Emo_Nova16'>Emo_Nova16</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hetalia: Axis Powers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, BAMF Canada (Hetalia), Blind Character, Blind!Canada, Brothers America &amp; Canada (Hetalia), Brothers Germany &amp; Prussia (Hetalia), Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hetalia Countries Using Human Names, Human &amp; Country Names Used (Hetalia), M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 22:21:03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,040</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23720965</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emo_Nova16/pseuds/Emo_Nova16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>War was never pretty, maybe that's why it took his eyesight.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>America &amp; Canada (Hetalia), Canada &amp; England (Hetalia), Canada &amp; Germany (Hetalia), Canada &amp; Prussia (Hetalia), Canada/England (Hetalia)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>71</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Blind but still fighting...</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Sorry for any history inaccuracy, also I have a headcanon that Wales used/is to be a blacksmith.<br/>Thank you, that's all!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Everything was cold, his bones seemed frozen and filled with lead, his skin itched with the terrible material of the blanket. The blanket was thin, men around him coughed and held shallow breathes, Matthew counted his heartbeat and slowly fell into the darkness of sleep. Hoping to see colour once more.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>When he woke he still felt the stiffness and dirt on the bandage wrapped around his eyes, he felt a hand, warm and harden by war and forgery. Matthew knew those hands, the breathing beside him was nothing of hard and shallow with gulps of oxygen as he heard whines, with such a hoarse voice he merely whispered. “I'll be back on my feet soon, uncle.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It stopped the heavy breathing and whines, but he felt the hand tightened and something warm kissed his temple. He could only smile before falling back asleep.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Greeted by the dark was normal by now, but as he sat up to the nurse's orders when he opened his eyes. Nothing but white, with dark splodges. Matthew looked up at the sound of the tinkering of metal and smiled, it was sad but he was going to survive. He was going to help.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Over the years, when he was blind. It seemed permanent and he needed care, and he was in the care of England. He sat on a chair outside letting the sun wash him in its light and warmth when summer came, but he grew restless, he yearned to go off on his own and that's what he did. Matthew found a pole and started to wander, letting the pole hit surfaces and let it echo and he could feel the vibration in the earth and get a general feel of it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Matthew quickly became keen when it happened, he found solace in the whispering fairies trying to get him to follow them deeper in the woods. But the tricksters found out with time that he could not see them, so they play no tricks on him. But let themselves be guides for him, as time followed, he understood how he could use this.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With time he learnt from sound and smell that something was wrong, touch became a new way of seeing. Once he asked Arthur to come to him, he surprised him when he touched his face with delicate fingers and gentle touches, Matthew learnt to murmur eased his hearing, and when told to speak louder he would.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Arthur had grown attached to Matthew in this state, he didn't stop the progress he made, Matthew started to talk to him about the Fairies, he called them his guides, small things that helped him around the forest when he went on his mini-adventures. But Arthur noted that Matthew always murmured in his ear when he would stand next to the man, it was simple things such as asking him to get more rest, calm down or to encourage him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Matthew and Arthur became a pair, a simple thing. To a degree that when a meeting was going to happen, Matthew simply said he had Kumajirou and the fairies to help him get about in the meeting room. It was easy for them, they fell into something of the closure of the two being near each other.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The war was terrible, Matthew fought, no one could say anything about how he fought when he did with ease and swift blows. Arthur and Matthew were a pair that was known on the battlefield and made many squirms in fear, Arthur's brothers learnt that even when Matthew was in this state he could fight maybe even better than he did before.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>America saw his brother again, at the end of the war. America looked at him, Matthew was taller now, he had a more delicate frame to his face when he smiled. Matthew's eyes closed, America knew why but he yearned for them to open for him to see purple bright and joyous in the daylight. America couldn't help but tear up as he knew that maybe one day his brother could see again...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At the meeting, the meeting deciding where both German brothers go. Matthew stood up and spoke, voice loud and clear with pronunciation. “Prussia will be a new representative of a town in the Domain of Canada. New Prussia.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone stiffened, Germany and Prussia sat. Both of them with wide eyes as they looked on at the blind nation, the same blind nation they made them like that. Germany felt his mouth dry as he felt tears come and sting his eyes, his brother was going to stay.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was present-day, Matthew sat at his chair. His eyes closed, as he let the sound around him grow louder until he decided it was enough. With ease, he grabbed a book and let it slam to the table, he flinched at it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He stood up, with eyes closed and voice a mere murmur to the rest as they listened, “Are you done yet? Because it's time for a break.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>...</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nations learnt that the Canadian would help them in a heartbeat, no matter what even when blind. So when China stood to the younger nation, he was proposing somehow to get his eyesight back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Matthew smiled and shook his head, he spoke. “I am used to not seeing, I fear that I would not learn from my mistakes, thank you.” His voice held a sadness but what seemed something to make it a punishment, it was his fault why he was like this in the first place.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>China shook his head and smiled. Matthew asked a peculiar question to most listening. “Can I touch your face?” Matthew wanted to feel the smile that China was smiling. Yao gently grabbed the Canadian hands and put it on his cheek, the hand roamed the face with tenderness and curiosity of a child.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Yao smiled still but tears fell. His seat friend was not going to see soon, but the proposal was still going to stand, he was so young but he allowed it. It saddened the older nation that a young nation like this, felt like they needed to punish themselves but he knew that his friend would give reasons that he believed he deserved.</span>
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